Young and old join together to Beat the Street
THE Beat the Street Llanelli game has launched with more than 2,080 participants signing up on its first day.
Beat the Street is a free interactive game that encourages people of all ages to move more and to get active; it started on Wednesday, September 28 and runs until Wednesday, November 9.
As well as helping people develop healthier lifestyle habits, it also improves air quality, cuts congestion and connects people to their communities and green spaces.
Beeping and flashing sensors called Beat Boxes have been placed on lampposts in the town for the duration of the game to help participants explore the local area.
Primary school pupils have been provided with cards and a map, while the wider community can pick up a contactless card from one of the distribution points listed on the Beat the Street website. Players then walk, cycle or roll between the Beat Boxes which are spaced approximately half a mile apart – hovering their cards over the Beat Boxes to score points.
The further players travel, the more points they score for their community or school team.
The first Beat Box you hover your card over marks the start of your journey. Walk, cycle, roll, run or scoot to the next one and score 10 points.
There are leaderboards for schools, community teams and charity teams and each is divided into total and average points so smaller teams have an equal chance of winning.
The first week of the game is themed Go Play for players to get to grips with the rules and subsequent weeks have a different focus, from Go Explore to Go Wild and Go Travel.
Olympic gold medallist and Tour De France winner Geraint Thomas took to Twitter to wish everyone good luck in the competition.
In a video posted on the Geraint Thomas Cycling Trust Twitter page, Geraint said: “I just wanted to give a massive shout-out to all the children and adults competing in the Beat the Street competition over in Llanelli.
“It is a fantastic initiative put together by Carmarthenshire Council, and I hope thousands of you will get involved by walking, jogging and of course cycling all across the town.”
Beat the Street Llanelli is provided by Intelligent Health and commissioned by Carmarthenshire Council, with support from Sport Wales, .
Cabinet member for regeneration, leisure, culture and tourism, Cllr Gareth John, said: “The game will give everyone of all ages and abilities the opportunity to explore the area, to spend time together as a family and to enjoy walking, cycling and rolling outdoors in all the wonderful green spaces across our borough.”
More information, including where to collect a free card, is available at www.beatthestreet.me/llanelli and on social media at @BTSLlanelli.